Mechanism for gumming envelop-blanks.



' No. 873,370. PATENTED DEC. 10, 1907.

0. H. HEYWOOD & D. B. TRAVIS. MECHANISM FOR GUMMING ENVELOP BLANKS.

APPLICATION FILED APR.28, 1906.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No. 073,370. PATENTBD DBO. 1o, 1907.

. 0'. H. HEYW000 0 D, E. TRAVIS. MBGHANISM PoR GUMMING BNVBLOP BLANKS.

APPLIGATIoN FILED A1 11.2a.1906.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEioE.

'CHARLES H. HEYWOOD AND DENISON E. TRAVIS, OF WAUKEGAN, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNORS TO UNITED STATES ENVELOPE COMPANY, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORA- TION OF MAINE.

MECHAN ISM FOR GUMMING EN VELOP-BLAN KS.

Speccation of Letters Patent.

Enhanced Dec. 10, 1907.

AppnationiedApriiz.1906. serian). 314.136.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that we, CHARLES H. HEY- woon and DENisoN E. TRAVIS, both citizens of the United States of America, and residents of Waukegan, in the county of Lake and State of Illinois, have jointly invented new and useful Mechanism for Gumming Envelop-Blanks, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to improvements in mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, and more particularly to improvements in machines of the class` represented in United States Letters Patent No. 420,792, dated Feb.` 4th, 1890, wherein the necessity of performing certain movements, after the blank arrives at the gummingfbed or station and before the gumming operation can take place,requires that the blank be retarded at such station, in consequence of which the speed of the machine is materially limited.

The present invention consists in certain novel features of construction and in the peculiar arrangements and combinations of parts as hereinafter set forth, and overcomes the above mentioned diiiiculty.

The principal objects of our invention are, first, to utilize the lifting power of a blank raised by a picker to bring the gummer into later contact with said blank; second, to provide mechanism which properly predetermines the time whenfa blank should arrive at the gumming bed, so that the gummer may either be brought onto said blank iinmediately upon arrival or kept out of contact with the bed when the blank is missing, that is, any given operation of the gummer is made dependent upon and is governed or controlled by the prior success or failure of the picker to lift a blank third, to provide a suitable governor for the gummer, the presence or absence of a blank at a certain point being responsible for the action or non-ac tion of such governor; fourth, to afford means for preventing the gumming of the bed in the absence of a blank, fifth, to furnish a construction which permits the machine to be Arun at a greatly increased speed, and, sixth, to embody in apractical and efiicient manner the improved features in mechanism adapted to be applied to an ordinary envelop machine.

Other objects and advantages of more or less importance will present themselves dur.

ing the course of the following description.

We attaini these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in whichh Figure 1 is a side elevation of our improved mechanism with as much of an envelop machine as is necessary to properly show a practical application of such mechanism Fig. 2, an elevation of the mechanism appearing in Fig. 1 as viewed from the right-hand or delivery end Fig. 3, a plan view of the elevator, gumming and deliveryv stations, and the blank carriage, Fig. 4, an enlarged plan view of a modified form of governor finger and picker tube; Fig. 5, an enlarged side ele,- vation of the governor, showing two positions of the same Fig. 6, an enlarged front elevation of said governor; Fig. 7, an enlarged front elevation of the movable fulcrum and trip mechanism, Fig. 8, an enlarged front elevation of the trip mechanism, showing the latch disengaged, and, Fig. 9, an enlarged front elevation of the movable fulcrum and trip mechanism wherein the ful- .Crum is in its low position.

' Similar figures designate similar parts throughout the several views.

Although a pneumatic picker is shown and described, any other device suitable for the purpose may be substituted, and various other modifications or changes, structural and otherwise, will occur to one skilled in the art, all of which are to be considered as belon .ing to our invention if they come within t e scope of our claims.

Portions of supporting frames 1 and 2 and an arch 3, of an ordinary envelop machine, appear in the drawings, a bed plate 4 being carried by said frames and the main driving shaft 5 being journaled therein. A rock shaft 6 parallel with the main shaft 5, and a cam shaft 7 'and rock shaft 8 standing at right-angles to the others, are also journaled in the frames 1 and 2. The cam shaft 7 is driven from the main shaft through the medium of a bevel gear 9 on said main shaft, a spur gear 10 on said cam shaft, and a bevel gear 11, meshing with said gear 9, and spur gear 12, meshing with said gear 10, said gears 11 and 12 being mounted on a stud 13 journaled in the frame 2.

Envelop blanks 14 (Fig. 1) are supplied t0 the machine by means of an elevator 15 (Fig. 3) such as may be seen upon referring to United States Letters Patent No. 580,942, of April 20, 1897. The blanks 14 are raised into position at the front or receiving end of the plate 4 which is cut awayat 16 to ac commodate the rear ends of the blanks. Between the ends of the plate 4, indicated by the diagram 17 in Fig. 3, is a gumming bed or station, (a blank being' shown in this position at 17 in Fig. 1), and at the back or delivery end of said plate is the discharge station 18 from which the blanks are passed to the folding mechanism which latter is not shown. Tbhe carriage for the blanks 14 comprises parallel carrier bars 19-19 arranged to reciprocate on the bed 4 longitudinally in Ways 20-20. Each bar 19 has a hook 21 near its forward end and a similar hook 22 back of the iirst about half way to the rear end, such hooks being on top of the bar and opening behind. Two slots 23 are cut in the bed 4 about midway between its ends and adjacent the inside faces of the bars 19. Supported by two brackets 24 on the front end of the plate 4, is a rock shaft 25 which carries centrally a governor finger 26 and at one end an arm 27, both tight on said shaft.

As a means for removing the blanks 14 one by one from the elevator 15 we may employ a pneumatic pick-up or picker tube 28,

` mounted to reciprocate vertically in a small` frame or bracket 29 on one side of the arch 3', and terminating at the bottom in a double nozzle 30 adapted to conform to the shape of the ends of the blanks which are to be engaged thereby. The tip of the finger 26 operates between the two ends of tie nozzle 30. This nozzle and the tip of the linger 26 are situated directly above the back end of the uppermost blank 14 on the elevator.

With blanks having more acute ends to present to the icker tube, a single nozzle 30a working wit iin a U-shaped terminal of the governor finger 26, as shown in Fig. 4, may be used.

The picker tube 29 is, in practice, connected at its upper end with a vacuum pump by a hose or pipe in the manner usual in pneumatic fed machines of this class; in this connection see United States Letters Patent No. 428,606, of May 27, 1890. This tube is operated from the cam shaft 7 by a cam 31 on said shaft, a rod 32 having a roll 33 bearing on said cam, arms 34 and 35 tight on a rock shaft 36 journaled in the arch 3, and a link 37, said rod being pivoted to the arm 34 and said link to the arm 35. The upper terminal of the link 37 is pivoted to the tube 28. A spring 38 serves to draw down the rod 32 and to keep its roll 33 on the cam 31. 39 and 40 are a guide and guide nger, respec* tively, for the link 37 or the pivotal connectien between said link and the tube 28,

whereby any turning or twisting on the part of the link or connection is prevented.

An eccentric 41 on the main shalt, and a strap 42 mounted on said eccentric and in pivotal engagement with an arm 43 tight on the rock shaft 6, are the mediums through which said shaft 6 is rocked. leeiproeal motion is imparted to the carrier bars 10, from the rock shaft 6, by means of two long arms 44 and links 45.

Brackets 46 and 46, fastened to the under side of the plate 4, support a rock shal't 47, mounted upon which are stop gage arms 48,-48 which project into the slots 23, in the plate 4, and are caused to oseillate forward and back once at each cycle of the machine. The actuating mechanism for these arms is not herein shown since it is of usual and wellknown construction and forms no part of ou r invention.

Belmid the cam 31 are cams 49, 50 and 51, in the order named, on the cam shaft 7. F astened to what may be termed the throw-ell' rock shaft S are arms 52 and 53. The arm 52 carries a roll 54 in operative. relation with the cam 50, and a hook or latch 55 having an upwardly projecting ear 56. A pin 57, on the arm 52 in front of the ear 56, limits the movement of the latch 55 under certain conditions, and a spring 58, between said latch and a pin 59 on said arm below the latch, tends to tension the latter downward. The arm 53, which is under tension from a spring 60, serves as a fulci'um for a bell-crank lever 61 pivoted to the free end thereof. A roll 62 on the upwardly extending arm of the lever 61 bears upon the cam 51 and is vieldinglj' retained in this relation. by a spring 63 l'astened at one end to a `linger 64 extending forward from the heel of said lever.

A vertical trip lever 65 is pivoted between its ends at 66 to a lug on the back edge of the frame 1, andthe lower reach of said lever extends downward in front of the ear 56. This lever is operated. by the cam 49 and a roll 67 on said lever near its lower end. `Pivoted to the upper end of the trip lever is a horizontal thrust rod 68 having its front terminal slidingly arranged. in the bracket 46. A spring 69, between the head of the lever 65 and a pin 70 on the bracket 46", tensions the base of said lever toward the cam 47 and the ear 56, and the rod 68 in the opposite direction.

An arm 71 is pivoted at its upper end to the bracket 46 and is arranged to swing behind a strain-supporting strap 72,' on said bracket, across the path of the thrust rod 68. A link 73 connects the arm 27, on the shaf t with the governor iinger, with the arm 71, hence it will be seen that the latter must move with said governor linger and the thrust rod and associated nieehanism become subject to said -iinger, since the amount in a cross-head`75 to which the gummer 76 is fastened by a clamp 77. The gummer 76 is located above the gumming bed or station 17, and is operated through the medium of a link 78, arm 79, rock shaft 80, arm 81,v

connecting rod 82, and the aforesaidbellcrank' lever 61.4 The link 78 connects the gummer rod 74 with the yarm 79, a clamp 83 being the means of attachment for said link to said rod. Both of the arms 79 and 81 are tight on the 'rock shaft 80 which latter is journaled in the frame 2 and arch 3. The connecting rod 82 extends between the arm 81 and the free end of the rearwardly eX-l tending arm of the bell-crank lever. A guide 84 on one side of the arch 3 and a guide finger 85 projecting from the clamp 83 prevent the rod 74 from turning after it with the gummer 76 have been properly adjusted. Gum is supplied to the gummer while in its elevated or waiting position in the usual manner.

Since the envelop blank upon which the gummer descends adheres thereto, a take-off or stripper 86 is` provided on the bed 4 over station 17, such stripper having a suitable opening therein through which said gummer passes, also ample passage-ways for the carrier bars 19 and the blanks thereon. This stripper prevents the blank from Jfollowing the gummer into its most elevated position.

Ateach cycle of the machine the members of our mechanism which are adapted to act upon an envelop blank, that is, the picker, the carriage, and the gummer, operate once, or, in other words, the picker is caused to make a full stroke in both directions, the carriage is caused to travel from one end of its course to the other and back again, working at right-angles to the picker, and the gummer is caused to reciprocate in a parallel direction with the picker. There is this difference, however, between the action of the picker and that of the gummer-while the travel of the former is always the same, that of the latter varies, being shorter in some cases than in others. The stroke or travel of the gummer is shorter when the picker fails to lift a blank than when a blank is taken up thereby, owing to the fact that the governor or controller operates to bring about the in* crease in stroke in the last case, but remains inactive in the first case and so permits such an adjustment of the gummer-actuating mechanism as to insure the short stroke. All of this will be fully explained in the following description of the complete operation of the mechanism.

Assuming that the machine is inaction and starting with the parts in the positions shown in Figs. 1 and 2 wherein the picker tube 30 and the gummer 76 are rising and the carrier bars 19 are sliding toward the front, further action in detail is as follows. The top blank 14 is lifted from the pile on the elevator 15, by air suction in the nozzle 30, to a plane slightly above the carrier bars 19, orrather the back end of such blank is so lifted, and said bars worked in unison by the eccentric 41 pass beneath said blank until the hooks 21 occupy ositions forward of the front edges of the llinlank. The blank is now released from the nozzle 30 by loss of vacuum, the bars 19 retreatv or move toward the rear, and the blank is brought by said bars and the hooks 21 to the gumming bed 17 and adjusted against the arms 48 which at this time project through the slots 23 into the path of the blank. While this blank remains at the station -17 to be gummed, in the manner hereinafter eX- plained, the carrier bars move toward the elevator 15 for the next blank, and the arms 48Pretire from the ath ofthe blanks on the body 4. Meanwhi e, the blank at the gumming station 17 is prevented from moving forward with the bars 19 by the grippers usually provided for that purpose which grasp the ends of the side flaps and hold said blank until the hooks 22 have passed beneath it intoposition to engage the front edge thereof. Stop gage arms, similar to the arms 48, located and arranged to be brought into the path of a blank at station 17 at the time the bars 19 move forward., between said blank and the elevator, might be used instead of grippers, but since the holding means for the blank at the station 17 forms no part of our invention, it. has not been deemed necessary or desirable to encumber this case with any illustration of such means.

Upon the rearward travel again of the bars 19 the blank at station 17 is carried by said bars and. the hooks 22 to station 18. Both pairs of hooks 21 and 22 are beveled from above downward and forward so as to pass easily beneath the blanks.

From the foregoing it will be understoodV that the reciprocating carrier bars perform a double action-i. e., they load blanks at stations `15 and 17 simultaneously when advancing, and on the return movement move each blank one station, one blank passing from the elevator to the gumming bed, and the other blank passing from the gumming bed to the discharge station.

Normally the governor finger 26 rests with its tip slightly below the plane to which it may be raised by a blank lifted by the picker tube for the carrier bars to pass beneath, and the arm 71 is outside of the path of the thrust rod 68, (see full lines in Fig. 5), the weight ot said iinger being sullieient to retain the members in these positions, but the lifting oi a blank from the elevator raises the finger and throws said arm across the pat-h of said thrust rod, (see dotted lines in Fig. 5), whereby the latter in its movement toward such arm is intercepted thereby and the trip lever 65 connected with such rod is consequently prevented -from releasing the latch 55 from engagement with the horn S7 on the 'trame 1, so that the iulcrum arm 53 for the gtimmer-operating mechanism is retained in proper position to insure the gumming of thc blank at the station 17, as the following will more clearly show.

The rising blank at the elevator has actuated the finger 26 and thereby caused the thrust rod 68 to be blocked by the arm 71 as explained, and so prevented the connected trip lever 65 'from tripping the latch 55. The latch prevents the arm 52 or its roll 54 'from following the low grade of the periphery of the cam 50, and the i'ulcrum arm 53 for the bell-crank lever 61 remains in its high position, consequently sufficient movement is imparted by the cam 51 to said bell-crank lever and the intervening members to cause the gummer 76 to descend on. the waiting blank below, deposit its quota of gum thereon, and then return to its inactive position again. rl `he revolving cams 4) and 5() do not, under the conditions just described, have any material eiliect on the mechanism. See Fig. 7.

Vhenever the picker fails to bring up and maintain a blank until said blank is loaded on the carrier, the governor remains inactive and the thrust rod does not prevent the latch from being unlocked by the trip lever,

vwherefore the position of the fulcrum of the bell-crank lever is so changed that the gummer is prevented from making its full stroke and depositing gum on the station 17 when there is no blank there to receive it. The aforesaid result is brought about in this manner: As the cam revolves the high grade thereof will encounter the roll 54 and aetuate the arm 52 enough to relieve the strain between the hooked end of the latch and the horn 87, and while such relaxation of the latch is maintained the lever 65, following with its roll 67 the cam 49, (said roll 67 riding on the low grade of said cam 49), will engage the ear 56 and elevate said latch far enough to free it from said horn, as appears in Fig. S. T he roll 54 now freely follows the cam 50 and when said roll rides onto the low grade oi' said cam the arm 52 permits the lever 53 to be drawn down by its spring, thus lowering the fulcrum of the bell-crank lever 61, as fully illustrated in Fig. 9 wherein the low position of said fuls73,37o i erum is shown in full lines and the high or normal position in dotted lilies. \\"hile the `fulcrum ol' the bell-crank lever is thus lowered said lever is actuated by the cam 51 to bring down the gummer through the medium of the intervening members, but said gummer does not descend into the gumming bed owing to the fact that such change in the position oi' said ulcrum has taken place and the stroke of the bell-crank lever and connected members coiisequently shortened. Meanwhile the latch 55 is kept in position by the pin 57 ready to slide ove and rengage the horn 87, which it does on the :return movement oiZ the arm 52 under the inlluence of the spring 60 and of the cam 50, the high grade oi: the cam 4) having already actuated the trip lever out of the ray ol` the ear 56. The mechanism is now in condition l'or a repetition oi` the cycle, with which it proceeds whether the picker is successful in raising a blank or fails so to do, the governor always regulating the stroke ol` the gummer and itself being controlled or in turn governed by the presence or absence ol' a blank at the working end of the picker.

From the 'foregoing it should be clear that the cams 31 and. 51 must be so timed that the gummer does not operate unt il a l'ter any given blank has been loaded on the carriage and brought beneath said gummer, or untilV a corresponding amount ot time has elapsed, then the gummer is caused to ,reciprecate with some considerable speed, or, stated in other words, the gummer remains at rest in its waiting or elevated position during the greater part ot the time required Vfor the picker to make one complete stroke in both directions.

Having now described our invention as embodied in a practica `l form, what we claim and desire to secure by ,liett ers Patent, is

1 In mechai'iism lor gumming envelop blanks, a picker arranged and adapted to lit't a blank, a gummer, and means so located as to be actuated by the moving blank to bring the gummer into later contact with said blank.

2. In mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, a picker arranged and adapted to move a blank, a gummer, and means to vary the action of said gummer according to the success or non-success of said picker in moving a blank, such means being so located as to be actuated by a moving blank.

3. ln mechanism lcr gumining envelop blanks, a picker, a gummer, and governing or coiitrolling means in the path of and adapted to be operated by a blank lifted into contact with such means by said picker to regulate the stroke ol said gummer.

4. ln mechanism for gumining envelop blanks, a picker, a gummer, means to cause said gummer to travel a longer or shorter distance, and a governor adapted to control such means, such i said governor having a linger subject to a blank moved lby said picker against the same.

' 5. In mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, a gummer, actuating mechanism for gummer consisting in part of a lever and a movable fulcrum therefor, said lever being pivotally connected With said fulcrum, and a governor adapted to control the position of such fulcrum. v

.6. In mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, a picker, a gummer, actuating mechanism for said gummer consisting in part of a lever and a movable fulcrum therefor, said lever being pivotally connected with said fulcrum, and a governor having a finger dependent for action upon a blank moved against the same by said picker, and adapted to control the position of such fulcrum.

7. Tha-combination, in mechanism for v gumming envelop blanks, with a bed, and a reciprocating carriage for blanks on said bed adapted to load two blanks during its advance and to move each of such blanks from one po'int to another during its retreat, of a picker adapted toy lift a blank onto said carriage, a gummer, mechanism for actuating said gummer, and governing or controlling means in the path of and operated by the blank lifted by said picker into contact therewith for said gummer-actuating mechanism, such means being adapted to cause said mechanism to bring the gummer into contact With the blank lifted by the picker.

8. The combination, in mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, with a bed, and a reciprocating carriage for blanks on said bed, of a picker adapted to lift a blank onto said carriage, a gummer, mechanism for actuating said gummer, governing or controlling means in the path of and operated by the blank lifted by said picker into contact therewith for said gummer-actuating mechanism, such means being adapted to cause said mechanism to bring the gummer into contact with the blank lifted by the icker, and means to strip the blank from t e gummer and permit it to be deposited on the carriage.

9. The combination, in mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, of a picker adapted to lift a blank, a gummer adapted to act upon said blank when said gummer makes its full stroke, means to convey a blank from the picker to the gummer, and governing or controlling means, in the path of a blank lifted by the picker, arranged to cause the gummer to make a full stroke When a blank is lifted by the picker into contact therewith and an incomplete or shorter stroke When the picker fails to lift a blank.

10. The combination, in mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, of a bed, a reciprocating carriage thereon, a picker adapted to lift a blank onto said carriage, a gummer adapted toactuponsaid blank when said to permit the gummer makes its full stroke, and governing or controlling means,in the path of a blank lifted by the picker, arranged to cause the gummer to make a full stroke When a blank is lifted by the picker into contact therewith and an incomplete or shorter stroke when the picker fails to lift a blank.

11. Gummer actuating mechanism comprising in part a lever and a movable fulcrum therefor, the former being pivotally connected with the latter, means to retain such fulcrum in one position, and releasing means to permit the position of said fulcrum to be changed.

12. Gummer actuating mechanism comprising in part a leverV anda movable fulcrum therefor, the former being pivotally connected With the latter, means to retain such fulcrum in one position, releasing means position of said fulcrum to be changed, and governing or controlling means for such releasing means.

13. In mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, a picker, a movable finger in the path of a blank moved by said picker, a thrust rod, an arm arranged to be actuated across the path of such rod by said finger when operated by a blank, a trip lever operatively connected with said thrust rod, and actuating mechanism for a gummer subject to the action of said lever.

14. In mechanism for gumming envelo blanks, a picker, a movable finger in the pat of a blank moved by said picker, a -thrust rod, an arm arranged to be actuated across the path of such rod by said finger When operated by a blank, a trip lever operatively connected With said thrust rod, gummeractuating mechanism comprising in part a lever and a movable fulcrum therefor, and means for retaining such fulcrum in one position, said means being in the path of said lever.

15. In mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, a gummer, and actuating mechanism for the same' comprising in part a lever and a movable fulcrum therefor adapted to cause the stroke of said gummer to vary, said lever being pivotally connected With said fulcrum.

16. The combination, in mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, with a picker arrangedand adapted to lift a blank, of governing or controlling mechanism for the gummer actuating mechanism comprising a thrust rod, a member adapted to be moved across the path of said thrust rod, and means operated by a blank lifted by said picker to so move said member.

17 The combination, in mechanism for gumming envelop blanks, With alpicker, and a thrust rod operatively connected with the gummer-actuating mechanism, of a movable member lying in the path of a blank moved by said picker, and a second movable memlio er. y873,370

ber connected With the first and arranged movement of the latter by the picker takes and adapted to be actuated thereby across place. the path of said thrust rod.

1S. In mechanism Jfor gummng envelop IVYIIVYSOOD' 5 blanks, a picker adapted to move a blank, a t t x gummer, and means so located as to be actu- Vtnesses: ated by the moving blank to bring said gum- R. W. LEWIS,

mer into contact with the blank after the l FRANK D. ROBERTS. 

